A few questions from a new owner of a used Speedster.

First, I have the Rotax 912S - 100hp. It runs around 250° in flight. Seems to be on the high side of the gauge. Is this normal?

Second, I'd love to repaint this bird. Many questions come up here.

- What fabric comes with the kits and does it matter as far as chemicals or techniques to remove the old paint?

- About how much does the paint weigh for the airplane? Should I just paint over the existing and take the weight hit if it's minimal? Are there other reasons to remove the old paint besides weight?

Third, on the top of the fuselage there is a tape line diagonally across the fabric. I saw a picture of another Kitfox with a similar tape line. Is this for strength or a tear? Can't imagine it was a planned seam.

Fourth, I'm 5'7". I'm sitting on a flotation cushion from my boat to see better. My shorter wife and son do the same and also put a cushion behind their backs to get closer. Is there a way to just move the seat up and forward instead of carrying around cushions?

Thanks in advance!

HILBILI

I'm sure I have more questions, but this is a good start.

No idea why the picture is inverted. It's not saved that way on the computer. It brings up another question. The Rotax website states no aerobatics with the 912. Is this right?

Hilbili- does your plane have a oil cooler on it? When I bought my model 4 it did not have a oil cooler and would routinely run 250- I put on the oil cooler from Kitfox and now it never gets over 210 even on 95 degree days. FWIW.

Obviously just in posting the picture, it's telling you it wants to do aerobatics, it's flying inverted. :D

Nice looking plane, although I now have a crick in my neck looking at it. I have learned to Preview Post to see what the picture does, I had the same thing happen a couple of times. I have had to intentionally save one upside down so it would put it on the web site right side up.

The Best person to ask if it is capable of doing aerobatics is John McBean.

Bill,
Welcome to Kitfox!

First Question. You already have a good suggestion, but from the photo, I suspect you have an oil cooler. You might want to check the accuracy of the sender / gauge by putting it into a cup of boiling water. The temps do seem a bit high for a Model IV.

Second Question. Can't help much here.

Third question. The finish tapes are generally placed over a structural member to give it two layers of fabric to prevent failure due to frictional wear. If you press on the tapes, you should feel a tube running diagonally across the fuselage under the tape.

Fourth Question. I have no doubt that anything is possible. A couple of thoughts come to mind. Adding a welded steel structure to support the seat pan would move the whole thing up and forward which would interfere with the controls and access to the baggage sack. I think what I would do is remove the seat pan, cover it with the clear 2" packing tape as a mold release and lay down several layers of fiberglass to duplicate the seat surface. Making two of those panels. Then determine the thickness that would be best and boxing the two panels at that height using once again the tape on the boxing material. You would have to trim the top pan to match with the front and top of the seat and clear the control stick requirements. Once that is done, I would then pour in some two part urethane foam to fill the space between the panels. Remove the boxing material, shape and sand and put a couple of layers of glass on the foam edges. Trim and sand again. Now you have a light weight lift for the seat that fits exactly. Attach it with Velcro strips.

The Kitfox kits come with Poly Fiber fabrix and covering materials. get a poly fiber manual it will answer all your covering and paint questions.
http://www.polyfiber.com/

The Model 4 builder' manual says use plastic zip ties around the ends of the fuel line fire sleeve. You can also coat the ends and into the inside a little ways with Red RTV. Use a gloved finger dipped in alcohol to work it into the sleeve insulation and smooth the ends. You can now get stainless steel zip ties that might work to snug the ends too. Might look more aircrafty anyhow.

HILBILI -

In answer to your second query yesterday, down below, concerning aerobatics:

I'm not sure what the lawyers at Rotax have to say about doing aerobatics with their engines, but I'm pretty sure none of them have flown aerobatics at all. The pilots' and engineers' opinions rarely seem to make it into print in our litigious society these days. :( With positive G on the engine, it can't tell which way the airplane is pointed anyway so screw 'em! :p

The Speedster is a credible positive G acrobat and was designed specifically to allow such maneuvering. I certified mine for simple, positive G maneuvers (loops, rolls, Cuban 8s, etc.) during my initial flight testing period. It flies surprisingly well on 80 hp so 20 more ponies should give you some additional vertical penetration. Crisp, sharp, hesitation rolls and nose positioning are hallmarks of the Speedster's shorter wingspan as much as the standard Kitfox flaperons and push-pull tube flight control linkages.

Since you didn't build the machine, you might want to research what the builder/test pilot certified the bird to do; it should be detailed in the Special Airworthiness Certificate documents signed off by the FAA or DAR.

Go to the Kitfox LLC website; select "Videos" on the left-side menu and then click on the "Jimmie Franklin Aerobatic Routine" for a lesson in what a properly flown Kitfox Model IV looks like doing loops to music. It's easy to maintain within a +4 to -2 G range, although the airframe is capable of quite a bit more by design. :)

"E.T."
OBTW: Make SURE you get qualified aerobatic instruction from a REAL aerobatic instructor before "making the ground go-round" if you're not already trained in this discipline. The airplane doesn't know where the ground is anyway and could care less if you fly smoothly and with appropriate G loads: Positive G keeps the carburetors purring uninterrupted as well as in boring, straight and level 1 G flight! ;)